The Chromatic Bansuri
A cross-cultural guide to learning the North Indian Bamboo Flute
Discover everything you need to know about bansuri technique so you can play any style of music with the soulful and haunting sound of the bamboo flute.
$30
PDF download
Secure checkout via Stripe. Your download link will be emailed to you.
Topics covered include
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Fundamentals
- Hand Position
- Breathing
- Embouchure
- Tonguing
- Tone Production
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Fingering System
- Find the best fingering for any scale, raga, arpeggio, or melody by understanding a few key concepts. Learn the most efficient way for the human hand to play the bansuri. More than 50 pages of exercises are given that lead from the beginning to the master level.
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Indian Ornamentation
-
Study the Indian Classical ornamentation
techniques taught by Pandit Raghunath Seth.
- Gamak
- Meend
- Murki
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Study the Indian Classical ornamentation
techniques taught by Pandit Raghunath Seth.
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Intonation
- Learn why Indian music is more in tune than Western music and how to bring the subtle beauty of Indian intonation practice (sruti) into music with chord changes.
Testimonials
“Joshua Geisler’s Chromatic Bansuri is an innovative and important resource for anyone seeking to expand their proficiency on the Indian Bansuri bamboo flute. His clear and systematic approach to alternate fingerings opens up numerous possibilities for jazz and world music musicians as well as students of Indian music. I have found this book to be a significant complement to the traditional approach to the bansuri, and it is my pleasure to recommend it.”
— Steve Gorn, bansuri virtuoso
“This book is fantastic! I’ve got to give kudos to Joshua — he is a really gifted writer. Technical writing is not an easy thing to do, and his style is both articulate and accessible, and the material is totally comprehensive. I’ve been working my way through it chapter by chapter, becoming progressively more impressed as I go. If anyone is thinking of learning to play the bansuri, short of getting lessons with a master of the instrument, this is probably the best investment you can make. I especially like it because it tackles classical bansuri playing as well as discussing how to use the bansuri in more contemporary “Western” music. Really useful stuff.”
— Geoffrey Ellis, ellisflutes.com
“In studying your wonderful book on playing the Bansuri it is obvious to me that you have a gift for imparting complex technical information in a clear and accessible fashion. As a professional musician and teacher I have observed over the years that there are not many fine players who are able to communicate precise, detailed explanations of the concepts and mechanics relating to the playing of their instrument. Considering that the art of the Bansuri is primarily an oral tradition, your achievement via the printed word is even more noteworthy! Perhaps you should consider publishing an instructional DVD (or two) to complement the book. I’ll be your first sale.”
— Ron Strauss, Violist
“I received your book a couple of months ago and have been burning through it. It’s been a big help with my playing so far and I tend to not find myself playing the bansuri without having your book open as well.”
— Matt Webber
“Thank you! I was surprised to receive an Email directly from the author of the book, it is a good occasion to thank you for sharing your knowledge. I find the book exactly what I was looking for, I love the simple diagram for the fingering chart, straight to the point and easy to follow while playing.”
— Chris Merlin